Personal Injury and Social Security Disability Blog

Link of the Day - Online Directory Of Dental Plans

Dental insurance plans are a mystery to most people -- what do they cost, what do they cover, etc. Now the National Association of Dental Plans has an online directory of dental plans. You can search for plans specific to your needs. Here is a statement from the Web site:

NADP is the largest non-profit trade association focused exclusively on the entire dental benefits industry, i.e. dental HMOs, dental PPOs, discount dental plans and dental indemnity products. NADP’s member dental plans provide dental benefits to 133 million of the 163 million Americans with dental benefits, i.e. 82% of the total dental benefits market. Our members include major commercial carriers, regional and single state companies, as well as companies organized as Delta and Blue Cross Blue Shield plans.

No other trade association, health or dental, can claim NADP's breadth of representation of the dental benefits industry.

Link of the Day - Alternatives To Wikipedia

I made this post last year:

The logo of Wikipedia, the online encyclopedia open to anyone to add to or edit, is a globe. That's appropriate, because Wikipedia seems to be taking over the world of Internet research. It's the first stop for many Web surfers looking for a quick explanation of a topic.

But Wikipedia hasn't completely taken over Internet research. There are several alternatives. Among them:

Citizendium.com is similar to Wikipedia, but does not allow contributors to remain anonymous.

Scholarpedia.com accepts entries only from scholars in their field. There are not many entries so far.

Conservapedia.com is just what the name implies -- a Wikipedia for the right-wing.

Link of the Day - DrGreene.com

DrGreene.com is an excellent resource for family medical information. Dr. Greene is a real person, and the information about him on the Web site is quite interesting. Here is the site's Mission Statement:

We are dedicated to using information technology to make pediatric wisdom more accessible than ever before. Our goal is to improve children's health by informing and inspiring those who care for them.

By addressing the connection between the health of our children and the health of the environment, we strive to make a difference for both.

By providing information, wisdom, and perspective, we strive to prepare parents to become knowledgeable partners who can work with their children's physicians in a new and rich way.

We feel strongly that the Internet should enhance, not replace, the partnership between our readers and their own physicians.

History

In 1995, Dr. Alan Greene had a thriving pediatric practice in San Mateo, CA. He was known for being an excellent pediatrician who worked with parents and kids on health, prevention, and development issues. He spent as much time as possible with each family -- discussing, diagnosing, and providing health education at each office visit. He also gave his home phone number to many of the families with whom he worked. Despite these efforts, he still found that he wasn't able to give each family all that they needed in terms of health care information. He was frustrated and felt that he was covering only the very surface of the great depth of specific health information each individual family needed. He also found that families were scheduling appointments because "Jason has a runny nose," but what they really wanted to talk about was feeding issues, sleep issues, potty training, or other important parenting issues that health insurance may not cover. His patients would have loved to have more of his time and expertise, but there weren't enough hours in the day. What a dilemma!

DrGreene.com went online in December 1995 to address this need. The AMA has called this the pioneer physician website.

Link of the Day - Texas Watch Questions Justice Hecht's Impartiality

As a follow-up to my mention Thursday about the editorial in the Austin American Statesman about Texas Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht's $447,000 legal defense fund, here is a link to the consumer organization Texas Watch. Texas Watch has done a study of Justice Hecht's rulings on cases involving law firms that donated to his legal defense fund. According to the study, Justice Hecht has ruled in favor of his contributors an astounding 89% of the time. The Texas Watch article has a link to the case decisions involving the largest contributors.

Link of the Day - Friday Fun

This may be more educational than fun, but I think it's fascinating. Nikon's Universcale was suggested in a comment by a reader, but I think it's worth listing in a separate post. It's a run through the entire universe, by size, from galaxies to sub-atomic levels, including all manner of animals. Use your mouse scroll wheel to zip though, and click to get more information on specific items. Try it.

Can A Judge Really Ignore $447,000 In Donations?

The Austin American-Statesman ran an interesting editorial piece recently about donations to Texas Supreme Court Justice Nathan Hecht's legal defense fund. The donations were from lawyers and law firms, mostly those who represent big business interests. The editorial asks if Justice Hecht will be able to rule fairly now when those same lawyers appear before the Supreme Court. Here is the text of the editorial:

In a legal battle with the State Commission on Judicial Conduct, Justice Nathan Hecht actively solicited money from Texas lawyers and law firms who practice before his court to pay for his defense. As he reported this week to the Texas Ethics Commission, those law firms and lawyers gave him $447,000.

That's 447,000 reasons to worry about Hecht's objectivity when the donors bring their cases before him and the Supreme Court.

Hecht sought the financial help last year to battle the judicial conduct commission, which had issued a "public admonishment" against him. It ruled that he had violated the state's judicial code of ethics in 2005 with his high profile advocacy of the nomination of Harriet Miers to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Asserting his First Amendment rights, Hecht appealed to a special three-member court, which overturned the admonishment.

To pay his substantial legal bills, Hecht tried two routes. The first was to get taxpayers to pay for it. But legislators who tried to help him by passing bills quit when they found out he was also asking for help in the form of campaign contributions. State law and a previous Ethics Commission ruling appear to allow candidates and officeholders to use campaign contributions for legal defense when it's related to their public offices.

Some of the state's biggest law firms — such as Vinson & Elkins and Baker Botts — responded, with contributions totaling at least $447,000.

Hecht says he "absolutely" will not be influenced in court rulings involving his contributors. However sincere and well-intended, though, Hecht cannot erase doubts that such contributions create.

Alex Winslow, executive director of Texas Watch, a consumer advocacy group and longtime critic of the court, asks a pertinent question: "Should a justice sit in judgment of someone who has contributed to his legal defense fund?"

Hecht says there is no difference, legally or otherwise, between giving a judicial candidate or a judge money to pay election expenses or to pay legal expenses on a matter related to his office. And Hecht notes that he has long argued for reforms in judicial selection.

So have we. Almost all judges and judicial candidates despise the need to ask for money to run for their offices.

But giving money to a judge to pay his or her legal bills is far more personal than for an election campaign. The lawyers and law firms who didn't give to Hecht would not be unreasonable in fearing they were at a disadvantage when going up against those who did.

Hecht said he was "just gratified that people were willing to help."

The question is: How do you show your gratitude to those who give you $447,000?

Link of the Day - Google Transit Trip Planner

If you live in a few selected cities (Austin is the only one in Texas), Google Transit Trip Planner will help you plan your trip using public transportation.

Link of the Day - Dallas Legal Hospice

The Legal Hospice of Texas provides free legal assistance to residents of Dallas, Collin, Denton, Henderson, Hunt, Rockwall, Kaufman, Ellis, Cooke, Navarro, Grayson, Hood, Parker, Johnson, Tarrant and Fannin counties who meet all three of the following:

1. cannot afford an attorney

2. are either HIV positive or have AIDS or a terminal illness, and

3. have legal problems relating to or impacted by their health.

Here are the services they provide:

Estate Planning
Will, Financial/Medical Power of Attorney, Living Will, Guardianship Declaration

Insurance
Health, Life, Disability, Credit, COBRA, Health Insurance Portability

Employment
Benefits, HIV Discrimination, Americans with Disabilities Act, Family Medical Leave Act, Return to Work Issues, Disability Issues

Housing
HIV Discrimination, Eviction

Credit
Debt Counseling, Creditor Harassment

Public Benefits
Social Security Counseling/Appeals

Link of the Day - Dallas Housing Crisis Center

The Housing Crisis Center provides housing programs and other services to those in need. Here is information from their Web site:

HOUSING CRISIS CENTER Making Our Community a Better Home for Everyone Services at the Housing Crisis Center (HCC) began in 1978 as the Dallas Tenants’ Association. HCC has since grown to its current continuum of housing programs and services specifically designed to "prevent homelessness and to stabilize the elderly, the disabled, and families with children in decent, affordable, permanent housing, and to empower these groups to be able to solve future housing problems.  Our vision is to "make our community a better home for everyone".

A staff of 20 supported by over 200 volunteers are available to provide services.

Most agency clients are the "working poor"; over two-thirds are female.

Almost half of our clients are children and youth: 22% below age six, 18% ages 6-12.

Close to 10% of our clients are over age 50.

The number of children and elderly continues to increase.

49% of HCC clients are African American, 32% are white, 16% are Hispanic.

Clients are from Dallas and surrounding counties.

The Housing Crisis Center is supported by grants from HUD, United Way, City of Dallas , foundations, individual and corporate donations.

4210 Junius St. Dallas, TX 75246-214-828-4244-fax 214-828-9623

Link of the Day - Benefits Checkup Site

The National Council on Aging has a helpful site called Benefits Checkup that lets people search or sign up for for more than 250 different types of medical and retirement benefits. Here is a description from the site:

About BenefitsCheckUp

Many older people need help paying for prescription drugs, health care, utilities and other basic needs. Ironically, millions of older Americans — especially those with limited incomes — are eligible for but not receiving benefits from existing federal, state and local programs. Ranging from heating and energy assistance to prescription savings programs to income supplements, there are many public programs available to seniors in need if they only knew about them and how to apply for them.

Developed and maintained by The National Council on Aging (NCOA), BenefitsCheckUp is the nation's most comprehensive Web-based service to screen for benefits programs for seniors with limited income and resources.

BenefitsCheckUp includes more than 1,550 public and private benefits programs from all 50 states and the District of Columbia, such as:

• Prescription drugs
• Nutrition (including Food Stamps)
• Energy assistance
• Financial
• Legal
• Health care
• Social Security
• Housing
• In-home services
• Tax relief
• Transportation
• Educational assistance
• Employment
• Volunteer services

Since 2001, millions of people have used BenefitsCheckUp to find benefits programs that help them pay for prescription drugs, health care, rent, utilities, and other needs. For more information on BenefitsCheckUp, contact us at [email protected].